"People's emotions are not caused by illness and despair. There is no one who avoids reward but commits punishment. Why not remonstrate?" Remonstration
After autumn, Situ Zhao Qian's condition began to get worse. He used to be able to occasionally walk around, but now he could only lie weakly in bed and live on rice soup.
As soon as Mu Shun of Xiaohuangmen entered the Zhao Mansion, he noticed the tense and depressing atmosphere in the courtyard. The old servants coming and going had sad looks on their faces. People seemed to be brewing a mood, waiting for the sickbed.
That person died, and then he could weep loudly.
Zhao Qian's sons are all in Shu County, and only his brother Zhao Wen is at his side.
As soon as Mu Shun came in, he hurriedly asked: "How is Duke Zhao?"
Zhao Wenben was also a scheming person, and he couldn't help but have red circles in his eyes at this time: "I used to have the energy to let people listen to him, but today I have been sleeping, and I don't even have enough water or rice."
"Where's Mr. Zhi?"
"Here." Ling Zhixi, the imperial physician, was nearby and responded when he heard the voice.
Mu Shun glanced at him and asked: "Mr. Zhao has been ill for a long time and has been recuperating through medicine, but it has always been taken care of by Mr. Zhi. Why is it like this now?"
Birth, old age, illness and death have their own days. Zhao Qian originally suffered from a serious disease caused by long-term fatigue. It is difficult to recover and no matter how good the medicine is, it is ineffective. But hearing Mu Shun's words makes it sound like Zhao Qian has not yet died and has appointed Zhi Xi to be responsible.
Already?
Zhi Xi was very dissatisfied. Although he did not dare to offend the emperor's favored eunuch, his tone could not help but become colder: "Mu Huangmen, Mr. Zhao is old and has lost his vitality. He usually relies on food to support himself.
"I originally thought that the weather would get cooler after autumn, which would be better for Mr. Zhao, but I didn't expect that the sun has been scorching these past few days and the yang energy has risen."
"Just tell me what to do!" Mu Shun couldn't understand these medical terms and asked impatiently.
Zhi Xi frowned, looked up at Zhao Wen, who was silent, and said: "There are still a few days of hot weather. As long as Mr. Zhao doesn't worry more and his appetite doesn't decrease in the past few days, when the weather cools down, he will definitely have some troubles."
improvement."
This sounded like good news, but to Mu Shun's ears, it was obviously an announcement of Zhao Qian's death, and he was afraid that it would be difficult for him to survive these days.
Mu Shun pretended to sigh and said regretfully: "A few months ago, Mr. Zhao was in high spirits and discussing government affairs with the country. Unexpectedly, now! The country knew that Mr. Zhao was seriously ill and asked me to bring some medicinal materials.
Check it out. The country has issued an edict. If there is anything missing, please let us know and the country will do its best to satisfy it."
After Zhao Wen heard this, he immediately looked touched. He knew that Mu Shun's trip was mainly to visit Zhao Qian's condition, so he took Mu Shun to Zhao Qian's bed in the back room.
At this time, Zhao Qian's eye sockets were sunken and his face was gloomy. He was lying on the couch, his body covered with a thin quilt, but there was almost no movement visible. In just a few days, he had become extremely thin.
Mu Shun secretly remembered Zhao Qian's appearance in his heart, but he squeezed out a few tears from his eyes and sighed: "Hey"
This sound accidentally woke up Zhao Qian. Zhao Qian, who was sleeping, moved his eyelids. Seeing this, Zhao Wen immediately leaned down and called: "Brother, Mu Huangmen has come to see you according to the imperial edict."
Zhao Qian's brows furrowed, as if he was in a nightmare and couldn't wake up. Mu Shun couldn't bear to disturb the old man when he saw this, but who asked him to come here with the emperor's orders? He had to talk to Zhao Qian.
A few words: "Mr. Zhao?"
After a while, Zhao Qian struggled to open his eyes, moved his throat with difficulty, opened and closed his mouth, and focused on Mu Shun: "Mu Huangmen."
Mu Shun nodded and said nothing. He first let Zhao Wen ask his servant to wipe Zhao Qian's face, then offered him warm soup and asked Zhao Qian to drink a few sips. Seeing that Zhao Qian had regained his strength, Mu Shun then
Said: "The country has always been thinking about Duke Zhao. If it weren't for Duke Zhao who managed the government and handled the affairs, it would have been very difficult for the imperial court and Guanzhong to settle down!"
Zhao Qian had just taken a few sips of the decoction and was leaning on the pillow at the moment, letting Zhao Wen rub his chest. After a long time, he exhaled a long stream of turbid air between his abdominal diaphragm. Zhao Qian looked dull and said weakly.
: "Your Majesty really said that?"
Mu Shun felt a little baffled, but still smiled and said: "How dare you use these words to deceive Mr. Zhao? These are the original words that the country asked me to bring, and I was specifically told not to change a word."
Zhao Qian seemed to have confirmed something, his haggard face added a touch of decadence, and he asked slowly: "May I ask what else your Majesty ordered?"
This attitude is getting more and more strange. According to common sense, when a seriously ill minister meets a minister sent by the emperor to visit him, shouldn't he say some official words of gratitude for the grace? How come Zhao Qian is so indifferent to the emperor's courtesy?
If it weren't for the fact that the other party was a minister that the emperor valued very much and that he was a dying old man, Mu Shun would have looked at him with a straight face. At this time, he endured his dissatisfaction and said truthfully: "The country has said that Mr. Zhao should rest in peace.
Don't worry, wait until your illness is cured, and then discuss the major affairs with Duke Zhao."
"Recuperate?" Zhao Qian showed a wry smile, but ignored Mu Shun's words and said to himself: "I was the governor of Runan County in the first year of Zhongping. I served in various eunuchs. I have been in the government for a long time. This old man from Shu County,
I haven’t seen the ancestral tombs in the ancestral hall for nearly ten years.”
"When the road to Hanzhong is clear, I will return home with my eldest brother." Zhao Wen said sadly with tears in his eyes: "It is only right for my eldest brother to recover from his illness first."
Mu Shun didn't like to stay in this sad and depressing environment. Seeing that he had almost finished talking, he found an opportunity to prepare to leave.
Zhao Qian struggled to stop him and said excitedly: "Please Mu Huangmen tell you that your majesty's deep love is deeply felt in my heart and I will never forget it!"
Mu Shun felt more and more strange and couldn't understand why Zhao Qian reacted like this. He was older and more scheming than people like Zhao Qian, so naturally he wouldn't understand the meaning of those ordinary lines of dialogue.
"What happened these days?" After Mu Shun left, Zhao Qian half-reclined on the couch, eyes blank, and asked Zhao Wen.
"It's not a big deal. It's just that Huangfu Song defeated Hedong Baibo and returned to the court victoriously."
Zhao Qian looked at Zhao Wen and asked dissatisfiedly: "Are you still hiding it from me? If this is the only thing, why did Your Majesty let that ignorant little Huangmen come to visit me today, and why did he bring these words?"
"I'm taking care of all these things. I can't suffer any loss. The imperial doctor's order has said that the eldest brother needs to rest now and can't add any worries." Before Zhao Wen could finish speaking, he was interrupted by Zhao Qian again.
"Who can escape this worry?" Zhao Qian sighed and said: "I know my own body best. Don't hide it from me. While I am still alive, I will give you more.
The most important thing is that our Zhao family in Shu County can come up with some ideas and gain a foothold."
Zhao Wen felt a pain in his heart when he heard these decisive words. He turned his back and wiped away his tears, and told all the things that had made a fuss recently.
After hearing that the emperor planned to reset the salt and iron franchise and was discouraged by almost everyone, Zhao Qian murmured to himself: "No, there must be other reasons. Your Majesty will not be so reckless."
He lowered his head and thought, and soon his head started to feel dizzy again. Zhao Qian asked uncomfortably: "Huangfu Yizhen put an end to the chaos, and what kind of reward will he get when he returns to the court?"
"This is strange." Zhao Wen twisted a towel with his own hands and put it on Zhao Qian's forehead. He carefully observed Zhao Qian's expression and said, "Whether it's Fan Chou or Duan Xuan, even those who follow the army with troops
The Wei clan, Fan clan and others in Hedong were all rewarded for their merits, but Huangfu Song, the general, did not receive any reward."
He thought for a while and then added: "Not only that, Huangfu Song didn't complain a word. After entering the palace to meet His Majesty, he stayed behind closed doors and saw no one. On the contrary, the Taiwei and others repeatedly wrote letters to give Huangfu Song a reward.